State senator's charges in neighbor dispute tied to allegations of affair

June 13, 2012|By Lisa Black and Ruth Fuller, Chicago Tribune

State Sen. Suzi Schmidt, R-Lake Villa, faces misdemeanor charges of trespassing and damage to property after neighbors accused her of harassing them over an alleged affair. (E. Jason Wambsgans, Chicago Tribune)

Convinced that her husband was having an affair with a neighbor, state Sen. Suzi Schmidt harassed the woman and her husband for more than a year and made "inappropriate comments" to the couple's young child about the alleged relationship, according to claims made in police and court records filed after Schmidt's arrest this week.

The Lake Villa Township couple told authorities that they had received harassing calls, texts and emails from Schmidt from December 2010 until February, despite repeated requests to stop.

Then on March 17, the woman told police, Schmidt "confronted my 7-year-old son and made inappropriate comments to him about an alleged affair I am having with her soon-to-be ex-husband," according to a court order barring Schmidt from contact with the family.

Schmidt, 60, asked the boy, who "knows her as an 'aunt,'" if her estranged husband, Robert, was coming over to the boy's house that day and told the boy that "Uncle Bob loves your mom," according to a police report.

The boy's mother told police that "she has never been in a relationship" with Robert Schmidt other than as a close family friend, the report said.

Suzi Schmidt, a Republican, was taken into custody Tuesday in Gurnee on a warrant for misdemeanor charges of trespassing and damage to property. She posted bail and was released later that evening.

Schmidt, a former Lake County Board chairwoman, could not be reached for comment. Neither she nor any staff member was present Wednesday at her district office in Lake Villa.

Robert Schmidt, reached late Tuesday, declined to comment except to say the couple are separated and divorcing.

GOP representatives said Wednesday that they were trying to reach Suzi Schmidt "to find out exactly what the situation is," said Robert Cook, chairman of the Lake County Republicans.

"We certainly don't want to rush to judgment," Cook said. "We want to make sure we are fair in what we do."

He said Schmidt, who already had announced she would not seek re-election this year, had worked hard to win the Senate seat for the 31st District in 2010.

"I've known her for many years. I know she's a kind person," he said. "For her to do anything, she would almost have to be provoked. I've never known her to even yell without a reason."

Lake County sheriff's department records show that the neighbors contacted police about the alleged harassment on at least three days since March 17.

On June 2 they said Schmidt came onto their property, tossed their boat oars in a nearby swamp and poked a hole in a bag of chicken feed left on the driveway, according to reports made to Lake County sheriff's deputies.

On Saturday, sheriff's deputies responded to a call from the neighbors claiming Schmidt had hidden in the bushes across the street and was taking photos of license plates of cars in the area.

Schmidt later called police herself to "explain her side of the story," according to the police report. She told police that the neighbors had been harassing her since she informed the male neighbor of the affair she claims his wife was having with her husband.

The neighbors, whose names are being withheld, did not respond to calls.

Their ranch house on a lake, within walking distance of Schmidt's home, is enclosed by a wooden fence with several "no trespassing" signs posted.

The neighbors shared a videotape with police that allegedly shows Schmidt on their property, according to the police documents.

The calls and emails alleged in the court order coincide with an incident on Christmas 2010 when, according to recordings and court records, Schmidt called 911 and told police to "ignore" her husband if he sought help during a domestic disturbance.

The 911 call and two later domestic disturbances came to light last September. In one, Robert Schmidt told police that his wife rammed his car with hers. In another, he said his wife bit him.

Prosecutors declined to press charges, citing "mutual combat," because Suzi Schmidt accused her husband of pinning her down and striking her in the face.

In November, Schmidt announced her plans to retire from the Senate and said she would enter counseling.

Patty Schuh, a spokeswoman for Senate Minority Leader Christine Radogno, R-Lemont, said only that they are "still ascertaining information" about the allegations against Schmidt.